Hayden had surgery to repair a tear in the main blood vessel that leads to the heart, an injury suffered when he collided with a teammate during Tuesday night's practice, a person familiar with the situation told the Chronicle on the condition of anonymity.

If not for the quick response by the UH training staff and medical personnel at Memorial Hermann, where Hayden was taken by ambulance, the injury could have been potentially fatal, the person said.

Citing federal privacy laws, UH officials would not comment or provide any medical information on Hayden when reached Wednesday night.

Hayden, a preseason All-Conference USA selection and defensive captain for the Cougars, will miss the remainder of the season, coach Tony Levine said after Wednesday night's practice.

According to Levine, Hayden suffered the injury when he and a teammate broke for a ball and collided.

"It was a freak accident," Levine said. "It was as unfortunate of a situation on a play that I have ever been a part of. It's something you rarely see in practice and playing football."

Hayden, a senior from Elkins, leads C-USA with four interceptions this season. He returned a pair of interceptions for touchdowns in consecutive games against SMU and UTEP earlier this season.

UH players were told the severity of Hayden's injury during a team meeting Wednesday afternoon. About a dozen players visited Hayden on Tuesday night.

"I let them know, because we feel like we are one big family," Levine said. "Our thoughts and prayers are with D.J. and his family."

Former UH defensive end David Hunter, now with the Texans, went to visit Hayden on Wednesday. Hunter said he is "close friends" with Hayden and that they shared a duplex last season."He was in good spirits, and he was able to shake his head and stuff like that," Hunter said.

"It's tough when you see somebody when a freak accident happens – somebody who works so hard, truly loves the game, is just a good kid and is a good friend. You take a step back and think about a lot of things. I told him he had a lot of people praying for him."

As he left the hospital, Hunter said he hugged Hayden's mother, Taloria.

"She told me everything is going to be all right, and I told her, 'You're right.' "